Today in New Zealand History

Today in New Zealand History

neill atkinson, david green, gareth phipps & steve watters

 

 

On October 12, it will be a 100 years since the battle of Passchendaele in 1917. It was New Zealand’s ‘Blackest Day’ in terms of lives lost in a single day. The failed attack on Bellevue Spur was probably the greatest disaster in New Zealand’s history – just one of the many events that Today in New Zealand History

 

covers – it reveals the milestones, innovations, catastrophes, victories and quirky facts behind the dates that made New Zealand History.  

 

The Ministry for Culture and Heritage and the Alexander Turnbull Library have collaborated to tell New Zealand history in a different way. Each day of the year has a story, some long, others short. As well as familiar historical events, there are many fresh stories and New Zealand firsts. Written by a professional team of historian’s, headed by Neill Atkinson, this thoroughly researched history tells our story in a new fast-paced and fresh exciting way.

We meet the people who make up our story, from the movers, shakers and innovators, like Ernest Rutherford and Edmund Hillary to the lesser known pioneers who broke barriers and changed minds, like our first ever female doctor, mayor and MP.

You’ll read about the tragedies that united our nation in grief: from New Zealand’s ‘blackest day’ at Passchendaele (12 October 1917) to the more recent Canterbury Earthquakes, as well as the struggles that, at times, have revealed a country divided, from the British attack on Ruapekapeka Pā (11 January 1846) to anti-Springbok protests (25 July 1981). It’s not all triumph and disaster, and this wouldn’t be New Zealand without a healthy dose of the bizarre. From Jockey Y-fronts (16 March 1940) to the Greymouth beer boycott (29 September 1947) and a parachuting Santa (20 November 1937),

Today in New Zealand History is a fun, fresh and fast-paced look at the story of our nation.

 

 

ABOUT THE AUTHORS

 

 

 

 

Neill Atkinson is Chief Historian at Manatū Taonga – Ministry for Culture and Heritage, where he leads the content team responsible for the NZHistory and Te Ara websites. He has written six books on aspects of New Zealand’s political, labour and transport history.

David Green, an editor and historian, is particularly interested in New Zealand’s race relations and sporting history. 

Gareth Phipps, a production editor, works with public history content on the Ministry’s NZHistory, Te Ara and Vietnam War websites. 

Steve Watters, a senior historian, has written extensively for NZHistory and leads a number of the Ministry’s educational initiatives in schools.

 

EXISLE PUBLISHING - RRP $44.99   PUBLISHED October 2017